GDHQNHL15_2pg-Arizona Coyotes 1

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ARIZONA
WESTERN PACIFIC CONFERENCE
DIVISION
COYOTES Offense
In the 2012-13 season, the Coyotes suffered from a lack of playmakers
at the forward position. While players like Shane Doan are consistent
contributors, the Coyotes had neither a superstar to carry the offense nor
a good depth of scoring. Their big offseason splash to address the offense
was to acquire former Dallas Stars center Mike Ribeiro, a player who had
scored nearly a point per game throughout his career.
The fact that the Coyotes bought Ribeiro out of contract earlier
this year should serve as an indicator for how good the offense was in
general. Ribeiro was a bust in the Arizona desert, scoring just 16 goals
and 31 assists in 80 games. Ribeiro entered Phoenix with a reputation
for being a problem child, a reputation the Coyotes were willing to look
past if he could boost the offense. That didn’t happen, but the “behavioral
problems” persisted, and now Ribeiro is gone.
What was left was an offense in which Keith Yandle was the team’s
top point scorer and no one player scored more than 24 goals. Thanks
largely to the contributions of Yandle and fellow scoring defenseman
Oliver Ekman-Larsson, the Coyotes finished 20th in the NHL in goals
scored, a rank that could easily have been a lot lower if it was up to the
group of forwards alone.
Arizona’s choice to replace Ribeiro is Sam Gagner, a player who has
been stuck in hockey purgatory (Edmonton) for the last seven years.
Keith Yandle, Lauri Korpikoski, David Moss
Gagner consistently scores about 40 points in a season, so he shouldn’t be
expected to turn the offense around on his own. The Coyotes will also look
to 19-year-old Max Domi, the son of former star player Tie Domi and the
12th overall pick in last year’s draft. It probably won’t be enough to give
Arizona an above-average offense, but it should be enough to at least have
a respectable scoring rate.
Defense
Ekman-Larsson and Yandle represent one of the strongest pairs
of scoring defenseman in the league. Yandle’s statistics are somewhat
perplexing; even though he was Arizona’s top scorer last year, he finished
with a dismal -23 rating. That indicates that Yandle can’t quite be called
a two-way defenseman, but his skill at setting up teammates makes him
an asset in the opponent’s zone and on the power play. Ekman-Larsson is
closer to being a strong two-way defenseman, but scoring is definitely his
top skill at this point.
One thing this team is lacking is a top lock-down defenseman.
Zbynek Michalek is probably the closest thing the Coyotes have to
one as he earned a +6 rating despite the team’s scoring struggles. Other
candidates include David Schlemko and Connor Murphy, who both
played capable defense in partial seasons last year. Michael Stone is
a decent two-way option, but it’s clear the Coyotes lack the proven
Key Additions:
Sam Gagner, Devan Dubnyk,
Joe Vitale
Key Subtractions:
Radim Vrbata, Thomas Greiss,
Derek Morris, Mike Ribeiro,
Paul Bissonnette, Jeff Halpern
Strengths:
Power play, offensive
defensemen
Weaknesses:
Forwards, penalty killing
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